


Under the Moons of Darillium: Part 5 A Wedding, Take Two

by Stardance1



Series: Under the Moons of Darillium: A Night of Adventures [5]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (1963), Doctor Who (2005), Doctor Who (Big Finish Audio), The Diary of River Song (Big Finish Audio)
Genre: Doctor Who References, F/M, Post-Episode: 2015 Xmas The Husbands of River Song, Singing Towers of Darillium
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-09
Updated: 2018-10-09
Packaged: 2019-07-28 13:30:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16242620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stardance1/pseuds/Stardance1
Summary: The Doctor has planned a beautiful ceremony, but what will River and the Doctor do when the Axons crash their wedding? Can they defend Darillium, and say their vows?





	Under the Moons of Darillium: Part 5 A Wedding, Take Two

**Author's Note:**

> Please note that this is Part 5 of a Series.

When River opened her eyes, she was still being cradled in the arms of the Doctor.  
He had been sitting up for several hours, since he had carried her to their bed, holding her while she slept.  
His back was reclined onto a small mountain of pillows. To keep her warm, he had pulled a soft throw-cover over her. It was her favorite patchwork quilt, colorful and worn and wonderful to touch. Glad of its warmth, she pulled it closer around her shoulders and higher over his chest as she lay her head back against his beating hearts.  
His gaze was alert and searching as he looked down to her. He smiled softly, lovingly, as he brushed a wayward curl away from her cheek and tucked it behind her ear.  
Seeing him more clearly, a flash of concern crossed River's features, but she quickly hid it. He looked terrible, she thought to herself, his eyes were glazed and red rimmed, and obviously without an ounce of sleep. Of course, the Doctor’s eyes were also filled with kindness, which was his biggest vulnerability and strongest not-so-secret super power.  
This impossible man with two hearts, her husband.  
She ran her fingers across his jaw and felt a slight shiver run down his back. He was filled with worry, she could see, but he was trying to conceal it from her. To protect her.  
"Professor River Song, how are you feeling?" he asked, his voice a soft whisper.  
She placed her hand over his, sliding it slowly up his arm, and then caressing his shoulder.  
She moistened her lips gingerly with her tongue, "I’m fine... How are you my love?” She stretched her arms, rolling her shoulders a bit and arching her back, almost as though she were physically trying to expel memories of Madame Kovarian’s visit.  
He ignored her question, knowing that she already knew what he was not yet willing to say out loud. “Before we went to sleep, we made plans, do you remember?"  
She couldn’t help it; she smiled up at the Doctor with that brilliant, dazzling, smile of hers that always quickened his hearts and overflowed every room with life. The smile instantly reached his own eyes.  
“Yes."  
“Yes?"  
Her smiled broadened more… "My answer is still yes, Doctor."  
River saw his eyes flicker and finally some of the tension eased out of his shoulders. He grinned at her and pulled her deeper into his arms.  
"Let’s plan a wedding!" he said.  
River shook her head slightly, with a coy smirk.  
“After we get some more sleep, Doctor!” She grabbed his hand, twisting him gently down onto the bed, and then she wrapped one of her arms and legs around him, facing him, she pulled up the quilt to warm them.  
“I guess we should fully re-energize for tonight River,” he conceded, yawning and surrendering into her embrace.  
“Oh Doctor, I like the way you think Doctor,” she replied softly, then leaned forward and kissed his closed eyelids as he quickly drifted into sleep.  
___________________________ 

Later, at the breakfast table, the Doctor and River Song sat and ate. The Doctor had made frittatas and scones, and absolutely covered her scone with her favorite marmalade. River tried to hold the slathered biscuit delicately, but there really was no saving face here, she had to lick her fingers as the Doctor watched her and tried to conceal a grin.  
He took the last sip of his tea, clanging his cup into the saucer. "Shouldn’t we observe some of the wedding traditions? For luck, River?"  
"Earth traditions, like something borrowed and something blue? Because I certainly don’t think I’m carrying a silver sixpence around for my shoe... or Gallifreyan traditions…or I can rattle off hundreds of other traditions, after all I am an archeologist, and you Sir are not even superstitious...” River responded, still trying to get the sticky sweet jam under control and off of her hands. "Plus, Doctor, if you want to get married by dinner, then it’s almost impossible to do some of those things…” she continued.  
“Loving the almost,” he teased, “But, definitely Earth traditions, our last wedding was Gallifreyan. Leave the sixpence to me, I can shake out some pockets in the wardrobe, and search through the storage rooms, I can always find interesting things back there…”  
River went up on her tippy toes and pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth as a thank you.  
He bopped her nose and chuckled.  
As he rushed off to the wardrobe, though he’d never admit it, at least two of those steps were actually skips.  
River saw them and she silently laughed to herself. No matter what, he was always filled with this youthful energy.  
She poured herself another cup of tea and chuckled to herself as she sipped it.  
___________________________ 

River had chosen to wear a Tardis blue evening gown. She smiled as she looked at her reflection. The dress was perfect. She’d never seen it before, but it had just been there tucked away in the back of the closet waiting for her.  
When she was wearing it, it cascaded several layers of tulle to the floor, rippling around her like wisps of the time vortex, or the bluest bend of a river. Her back and her chest were covered by a single, seductively sexy, transparent layer of fitted tulle; although, a soft black fabric did cover her from her waist to her bust, in a deep V neckline. The black was inlaid with rows of tiny silver beads, scattered like the constellations of Earth.  
River walked out to the console room and watched the Doctor unannounced. He looked handsome indeed, she observed.  
He wore a bone-white dinner jacket, with black satin lapels, a white shirt and a white vest with a simply stunning black satin tie at his throat.  
The trim of the suit gleamed in high contrast black satin, and was further punctuated by equally glossed black satin buttons.  
He turned and caught her admiring. “You’ve never looked quite so distinguished.” she said.  
“I’m glad you approve. And you certainly look stunning.”  
“Thank you Doctor…” River walked over to him, curious at what he had been doing for so long at the Tardis monitors.  
She took a peek and then faced him perplexed.  
“The old girl is taking a quick trip for us River. I’ve programed her to travel to Earth on her own…”  
“But why Doctor?”  
“Supplies Professor Song, for the wedding!”  
“It really doesn’t have to be a big affair….” she protested a bit incredulous.  
“Well the Tardis is all set to go, she needs to get out once in a while you know River.”  
River smiled, “But Doctor, isn’t it safer…”  
“Ever so dull Professor Song! It’s a surprise. Trust me.”  
“Deal” she agreed smiling, and linked her arm through his.  
The Doctor pulled a leaver and whooshed the Tardis into action. “The Tardis will leave us at Alphonse’s. It is closed for several hours for cleanup and repair, and we can renew our vows on the balcony facing the singing towers, the Tardis will continue to Earth and be back to us in a jiffy.” 

_____________________________ 

The Doctor and River arrived at Alphonse’s and set independently to work while they waited for the Tardis to return with the Doctor’s surprise.  
River went off to the kitchens to help test and arrange the food in storage, making sure that nothing could have remnants of poison.  
She even helped the kitchen manager define some processes to be sure that all food was safe and tested prior to going out.  
Not to mention offering a few hiring tips, and a description of the buddy system for the wait staff.  
Meanwhile the Doctor was meeting with Alphonse, helping his friend, and also finalizing a few plans for the wedding.  
Every once in a while he’d wring his hands in nervous excitement.  
_____________________________ 

Not too long after arriving, the Tardis had returned with the Doctor’s surprise.  
The Doctor ushered all that needed ushering to the balcony, and then went off to find his wife.  
As he walked the intricate corridors of the lower levels, the Doctor noticed and tried to ignore one, then two, and then three lightbulbs begin to flicker. It was probably just nerves he thought, nothing more that could need investigating here…  
Suddenly he was plunged into darkness, as all the lights in the restaurant went off at once.  
“River!” he called out, desperate to make sure she was alright.  
“Here Sweetie!” she called out; and then they followed the sound of their voices back to each other. “What could have happened?” she asked when she’d found the Doctor.  
The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver from his inner jacket pocket and then waved it around, scanning the lights and atmosphere. “Don’t worry River, I’m sure it’s nothing… it’s just… oh…. OH….” The Doctor listened intently to his screwdriver as it bounced back results, disbelieving what he was hearing.  
“Doctor, stop” River responded in a calming voice, “don't panic, tell me what’s happening!”  
“Something has drained away the energy here River, I think I recognize the energy signature of the drainage strategy, but I ... can’t be sure…” He hurried his pace forward… and mumbled as he walked...“Energy vampires? No! Electricity bats? No! Much older, yes much older…River!” he spun around to face her, though in the darkness and shadow she could barely make out his face…but the strain of his voice was unmistakable... he took both of her hands in his and said, “I think it’s the Axos!” 

_____________________________ 

The Doctor and River emerged from the stairs below and made a beeline toward the anxious Tardis. The Doctor snapped his fingers to open the doors. Once inside, the light shone, and they could get to work on who the Doctor believed was the responsible party.  
“We have to follow their path of darkness, River, I’m sure there will be more than one local planet impacted…”  
“Look, Doctor!”  
On the Tardis screens they could see the identified trail of desecrated and drained local planets spread out through this quadrant of the Andromeda. Each had been hit by strange energy losses, but all appeared to be slowly recovering. Even more alarming though was that at the bottom of the mainframe screen, in large bold flashing letters, was a warning. Tardis tracked.  
“Doctor, the ship must have followed the Tardis back to Darillium!”  
“Yes River, it looks like the starship was in the vicinity, searching for power, and latched on to the Tardis signal as it descended into Darillium!”  
“Now that she’s on the ground, will they be able to find us?”  
“The Tardis is smart, she's cloaked herself upon landing, it may give us an upper hand in the end. But they are definitely looking for it.”  
There was a knock on the Tardis doors. It was Alphonse.  
“Doctor, Sir,” he began in a heightened voice, “I can see from the balcony that other nearby establishments are loosing power as well. The lights are going out building by building all over this side of Darillium!”  
“I know what is causing this. And all of us need to get to work! Alphonse, contact as many people as you can, warn them to turn their power off, not to use any electrical devices and remain well hidden. If these monsters get desperate enough for energy, they may come after people!…” the Doctor turned to fully face Alphonse, “Have them begin to gather candles as well.”  
“But Doctor, who are they?” Alphonse inquired  
“They are creatures from Mutter’s Spiral who scavenge for fuel. On the outside they can appear as beautiful golden humanoids, as though Midas himself had touched them. But underneath these physical covers they are mangles of tentacles and nerves; like a ball of yarn they can entangle their victims and pull them in, dragging them and then absorbing them into their body. Once there the Axos will grip the victim with rows of internal claws, restraining them as their very life-force is drained to serve for fuel.”  
Alphonse visibly paled, but he quickly hurried out the door to make his way down to the security office to get on the communicator.  
The Doctor turned to River. “River, we need to get to the electrical grid and create a chain reaction on this side of Darillium to turn everything off. The moment that happens, we need the Tardis to uncloak so that the Axos latch onto her power and come here to find us….”  
River nodded, understanding his plan. “I will go to the electrical grid and come back to help you face the Axos”.  
“I have met them before on Earth River, they will not be easy to foil. Take care of yourself out there, and be sure to persuade the grid operators to take down power for some time. I will signal you when it’s safe to come back online.”  
River reached into a hidden pocket of her gown and brought out a tube of her infamous hallucinogenic lipstick. With a quick and steady motion, she applied a vivacious red layer to her lips and blew a kiss to the Doctor. “Don’t you worry Doctor, I can be very convincing.”  
She winked and ran out of the Tardis. The Doctor had raised his eyebrows in amusement and slightly shook his head. There went his very capable bride.  
____________________ 

River “borrowed” a transport from outside the restaurant, and quickly identified on her computer what substation she needed to visit to take down the grid. She found it and quickly dispatched with the staff. A kiss or two in and she’d identified the floor manager. He gave the staff the night off and River quickly coded a software solution into her computer and began to upload it to the power converts in the substation.  
“I’m sorry Doctor, but I won’t let you face them alone. That’s marriage.” she said under her breath.  
She scheduled the software virus to kick off in 10 minutes, notify the Tardis, and then self destruct within 24 hours. That should give the Doctor and her plenty of time to dispatch the Axos.  
She bade her host goodbye with a kiss, leaving a note pinned to his factory safety vest with instructions on disabling the virus sooner in case of an emergency. And then ran back to her transport. If she timed it correctly, she’d get back to the Doctor just as he’d switch off the Tardis cloak.  
But the traffic as people panicked was horrendous. “Go to a safe place and hide!” shouted River, out of the windows of her black steel transport. But everyone was too frenzied to listen. She found gaps for the transport to squeeze through, going over side walks and riding over barriers. She ran into Alphonse's just moments after the Doctor had switched off the cloaking mechanism.  
But the Axos were too fast, having zeroed in on the massive energy of the Tardis, they surrounded River just 20 or so odd feet from the Tardis doors.  
They stood like golden statues, silent and menacing.  
Behind her, a tentacle shot out from one of them and it wrapped itself around her wrist.  
“Ow!” she screamed, the tentacle torturously constricting her wrist, and burned her skin at the same time, like the jolt of an electric eel. “I’m sorry, but you’re not my type.”  
At the sound of her scream, the Doctor ran out of the Tardis and whipped his Sonic at the Axonoid. “I think you’ll find she’s already spoken for!,” the Doctor shouted angrily, “get your tentacles off of my wife.” He buzzed the sonic and sparks flew from the tentacle. It released River and receded back into the Axos Unit.  
“Maybe not a good time for spoilers Honey,” said River, “but FYI, you’ve definitely said that before.”  
“I remember. Too many times for my liking Professor Song!” the Doctor said examining the red welts on her arm, and then holding her hand in his.  
She winced a little from the pain. “I don’t know how they fit all of the tentacles into those body suits!” she said. “Must be bigger on the inside.”  
The Doctor turned to identify the leader and address him. 

“Do you know who I am?,” the Doctor asked.  
“You have foiled our plans before Doctor, but this is not Earth, this is not your concern…” came a deep steady voice from the golden form, “we will take your Tardis, and all the remaining fuel from this planet.”  
“Talk about power hungry,” the Doctor said to River before turning his attention back to the Axos, "Your group and your starship haven’t been home in a while have you?"  
"Our mission can not fail, we are recon team 1. Our planet depends on the energy we bring them.”  
"Well let me tell you that while you go around planet to planet, trying to steal natural resources, you miss some of the best parts of our Universe. Ever heard the expression stop and smell the flowers? Gather ye rosebuds while ye may? No? Here."  
The Doctor took a lovely boutonniere that he’d pinned onto his dinner jacket off and tossed it to the Axos.  
They gathered around and smelled the flower. "It smells nice," they concede.  
"There you go", said the Doctor. “Planetary resources need to be cultivated and preserved, not drained. Let’s help you bridge that gap into the new millennia. Because today gentleman it’s a new day for the Axos.” he took River’s hand in his own again gently, "And new days can have all kinds of possibilities…. Do you know what the last planet in Mutter’s Spiral is?” the Doctor inquired before continuing. “Its the Akoshemon System. It lies between Mutter and the Andromeda. And what I know that you haven’t yet discovered, is that a new moon has formed in that gap, an exomoon to Akoshemon, uninhabited and unclaimed. And therefore according to the Galactic Alliance, you are free to begin colonization, as long as you do it peacefully….It completes it’s rotation every 8 hours, meaning that it is quite a windy place. The counterclockwise wind storms can reach 450 miles an hour. It’s about time your Units found sustainable power sources.”  
“We do not know how to do this Doctor.” the tall, slender, humanoid responded…  
“Funny you should say, because some time ago, completely by accident, I created this doohickey….” the Doctor snapped his fingers, and entered the Tardis to pull out a small device from behind the door, it looked as though it had been assembled out of kitchen parts, a steamer head, an egg whisk motor with small electrical parts attached, and several odds and ends that even River couldn’t identify. The Doctor continued, “It is a windmill example that will catch the wind on the exomoon and once you have the energy you need, you can then store it and transport it to your planets. It might even be worthwhile as a business, as long as you responsibly share your good fortune and help your neighbors in need when you can."  
“The Doctor in the Tardis is helping US?” the Axos asked perplexed.  
"You’re in luck.” the Doctor said, and lifted River’s hand to his lips. "Today is one of those great days where everybody lives, to make better choices tomorrow."  
“Why Doctor?” the high frilled Axos voice questioned once more.  
"Because sometimes we all need a second chance … to be happy.”  
And with that, the Doctor quickly dispatched the Axos and sent them back to their starship.  
He turned to speak to River. "Do we need to go back to the substation?”  
“No Sweetie, the power will restart in a matter of hours.” River said  
He extended his arm to River, and she linked her arm through. “Then I think we have a previous engagement Wife?” the Doctor asked, a twinkle in his eye.  
River’s eyes met his. “Absolutely, Husband.” she responded.  
And with that, the Doctor led River to the balcony.  
______________________________ 

While the Doctor and River had been discussing and negotiating final bits with the Axos, Alphonse had set to work on the Doctor’s plan.  
Firstly, his staff prepared and placed hundreds of glass lanterns on the balcony for the wedding.  
They were four sided and tall like lighthouses, each fitted with three or four candles within. The candles were thick and of staggered height. The dripped wax pooled at the bottom and reflected the light of the flames, like small plates of moonlight.  
With the whole planet cloaked in night and darkness, River and the Doctor, stepped into a bubble of light of their own making.  
Once inside, River could see that by the balcony railing, in front of the Singing Towers, stood a gentleman with a shiny anvil.  
The anvil was horned and large. And next to it stood a large hammer.  
River gave a small shriek and stopped walking. She turned to the Doctor, “You brought me an anvil priest from Greta Green!?!?"  
“Not just any Anvil Priest, River, this is an old friend Richard Rennison. I helped a few eloping couples find him during the war.”  
River smiled brilliantly at him, shaking her head, “You impossible, wonderful man!”  
She kissed him. “Not yet River!” the Doctor blushed and River laughed. “Come on, Wife,” he said, once again holding her hand, and now pulling it a little toward the anvil, “Let’s RUN!”  
And with that, they both took off running and laughing, straight toward the anvil.  
____________________________ 

River and the Doctor greeted Richard, and thanked him for coming.  
Richard turned toward River, “So Miss Song, what do you know about anvil weddings at Greta Green?”  
River smiled at him, “Not enough, I’m sure.”  
“Well it’s quite simple,” Richard responded, “Couples who need a place to get married, can travel to Scotland where our laws say that any couple that chooses to be wed, that chooses to love each other, should have the right to be married.You just have to declare this intent and love in front of two witnesses, which in this case will be myself and Alphonse.”  
Richard continued, “Now this here is 1938, and the English…” he spat in disgust over the side of the railing, and River had to cover her mouth to hide a smirk, “continue to meddle in Scottish affairs, so I’m supposed to make sure one or both of you are in fact Scottish….. Obviously from the Doctor’s thick burr, he’s Scottish….”  
“My mother’s family is from Scotland, from the Highlands.” River quickly interjected.  
“Good, good,” Richard added, “then we can begin.”  
From behind him, Richard passed River a beautiful bouquet of flowers.  
River turned and looked at the Doctor in amazement, “They’re dancing lazarus orchids,” he said, “I thought you’d enjoy them…”  
River turned her gaze at the beautiful vibrant purple, bell shaped flowers. They had a unique checkered pattern and the bells almost resembled bonnets with dancing people below, all dressed in monochromatic pinks and violets.  
“They’re amazing Doctor!” she said, admiring their lovely color and shape.  
“Wait,” he says to her, and digs a coin out of his pocket. He kneels down in front of her, and places a sixpence in her shoe, “I want to do this properly.”  
River’s eyes are already filled with tears. She holds her hands out to help the Doctor up, and when she does she pulls him in for a second to whisper, “thank you!”  
Richard continues with the ceremony, “Now, for a handfasting, we will require a ribbon or a piece of cloth….”  
The Doctor smiled, and pulled off the satin black tie at his throat, and handed it to Richard, but his eyes, never broke contact with River.  
Her heart in her throat, two tears fell down River’s face. Both she and he vividly remembering the first time their hands had been bound by another necktie, at their first wedding.  
As they held hands, Richard wrapped the necktie around their wrists and forearms, and offered them the opportunity to say a few words to each other…. 

The Doctor began, “Doctor River Song...  
Trying to avoid you has been like trying to avoid a tsunami.  
My life can be so dangerous at times, and I tried for so long, for too long, to keep you away from it.  
To keep you at arms length in order to keep you safe.  
But no matter what I tried, there you’d be, with a smile that could bring hope even in the darkest pit.  
For eternities now I’ve wandered, bounced around the Universe, and in you I’ve found more than my match, I’ve found my home, I’ve found the bespoke caretaker of my hearts.  
I’m so proud that Doctor belongs in your name, that my ring belongs on your finger, and most of all, that our hands, hearts, and minds will always be bound together, across time and space.” 

River smiled at him, squeezed his hand and nodded. Then slowly, she began…  
"I know that you have worried about me in the past, Doctor.  
Worried about what I’ve suffered in life, my childhood, my parents, StormCage.  
I can see it in your eyes, at moments, when you wonder if it’s been worth it to me.  
I can’t speak for you, all I can say is that I’ve never had one second of doubt.  
Doctor, it would have been worth it for just one moment, for just one adventure, for just one earth-sized night with you.  
Everything else that we’ve had, over all of time and space, it has been extraordinary. It’s been worth it.  
And across all of time and space, I vow to love you.  
I have been so proud to be your wife. And I’ll be proud to carry on that title as long as I can…” 

The Doctor pulled her toward him, ceremony be damed. He held her in his arms, and pressed his head to hers, opening their psychic link and speaking directly into her mind…  
"Then it’s yours forever River. Because that’s how long I’ll love you…  
Note this wife, I am tying our minds together, like our hands, and our bodies.”  
Energy coursed through River, from her head to her toes, like a magnet almost pulling her up off the ground and closer to the Doctor. She whimpered softly as the Doctor inclined her chin up so that he could kiss her.  
She wanted to wrap her arms around him, link her arms around his neck and pull him closer, but not yet…. 

Richard smiled at the couple, and continued.  
“Now a final blessing….  
Blessed be this union with the gifts of the East.  
Communication of the heart, mind, and body  
Fresh beginnings with the rising of each Sun.  
The knowledge of the growth found in the sharing of silences. 

Blessed be this union with the gifts of the South.  
Warmth of hearth and home  
The heat of the heart's passion  
The light created by both to illuminate the darkest of times. 

Blessed be this union with the gifts of the West.  
The deep commitments of the lake The swift excitement of the river  
The refreshing cleansing of the rain  
The all encompassing passion of the sea. 

Blessed be this union with the gifts of the North  
Firm foundation on which to build  
Fertility of the fields to enrich your lives  
A stable home to which you may always return."

____________________________ 

The Anvil Priest concluded the marriage ceremony by pounding the anvil with his hammer. Ringing it loudly to the applause of Alphonse (and some of the wait staff, who had snuck up to watch).  
River kissed the Doctor, and they both laughed happily at the felicitations they received. Some guests had simple local wind instruments, and the Doctor swayed, swinging River gently in his arms. “I think I owe you this dance,” he said in her ear.  
Later some simple food was brought up from the kitchens to a large reception hall, still solely lit by candlelight, since power would not be restored to the dark side of Darillium for several more hours. They broke bread together, shared plates of food, stories and laughter, and several hours were spent in good fun.  
The Doctor played a ball game with the staff, a mixture of soccer and basket ball, where a hard rubber ball had to be kicked and bounced off the hip. River cheered from the sideline. “You should see him play cricket or soccer!” River confided in Alphonse, “He’s always magnificent.”  
River had some designs drawn on her left shoulder, like the old Earth henna tattoos. It was a Darillium tradition, a craft the restaurant dishwasher excelled at and offered as a wedding present. River had her draw two intricately spiraled patters that paired into one, with soft waves around them.  
The Doctor came over and mussed her hair.  
“That’s beautiful!” the Doctor told their new artisanal friend approvingly, “it looks exactly like a double black hole collision rippling out impact to the very fabric of time and space!”  
River dazzled him with a smile, “I know, that’s what I asked for. It’s meant to be our timelines.”  
The Doctor crooked one eyebrow and smiled at her gently, before leaning down and kissing her on the lips.  
He sat down at the table next to River and reached out for her hand. From his pocket, he handed her a sheet of Tardis blue stationary.  
“River, it’s almost time for Richard to go back to 1938. I’ve set the time and space coordinates in the Tardis and the staff is moving the anvil now… I’ve asked him to mail some photos of us from the wedding and the celebration to your parents in Manhattan. Would you like to write them a note to go along…?”  
River nodded happily and quickly penned a short note: thanking them, missing them, and loving them, and sending her and the Doctor’s love. She gave them hope that she could find a way to visit them soon, after her night on Darillium.  
When she was done, Richard came over to retrieve the letter. She thanked him and entrusted the precious Tardis blue envelope over to him. He then gave her a gift as well, a white oval stone that felt cool and smooth to the touch. River turned it over in her hand, admiring its texture.  
“It's lovely, thank you! Is it a Scottish river stone?”  
“Aye lass, I gave one of these stones to the Doctor as well. It’s called an oathing stone. Take it home, write down your vow to each other, and leave them some where in nature, so that your promise will always be out there in the Universe.”  
River hugged him and thanked him again. Promising to check in on him if she was ever in the neighborhood…and at the right point in time.  
While the Doctor and River waited for the Tardis to return from its trip, they helped clean up the reception area, gather the glass and blow out the rows of candles.  
When the Tardis materialized, unbid, it opened its doors to the tired Doctor and River.  
River quickly walked over to the Tardis console, typed some coordinates in, and relocated them to a quiet honeymoon spot, at the top of the left singing tower.  
________________________ 

The wind howled outside the Tardis, blowing across the sky, and diving down to the dunes below. Blowing listlessly through the caves at the tower base, and beginning to rustle deeper into the layers of the caverns, vibrating with a celestially resonate song.  
River had just parked the Tardis. She expanded the bubble of atmosphere around it, to protect them from the wind and cold, and then threw both doors open for her and the Doctor to step out onto the summit of the rock tower.  
Rather than look out at the horizon, or across the sand and dunes, they both instinctively looked up at the stars. It was cold and blustery, and without a cloud in the sky. The dark side of Darillium was still without power, so no ground light interrupted the magnificent view of the Darillium moons and the stars beyond.  
River spread her arms out, and spun around as though embracing all of space. The Doctor watched her and smiled; he then put out his own arms and spun around with her. They fell into each other’s orbit and spun into each other’s arms laughing.  
River held the Doctor’s face in her two hands. “Doctor,” she said, “Let’s spend the night out here, under the moons of Darillium, amongst the stars, ...together…”  
He looked into her eyes and could see the depths of passion there, feel those embers igniting in his own soul. But he hesitated… “River, I’m not sure if out here is the most appropriate place….”  
While he was talking, River unzipped the back of her gown, and let it slip effortlessly down to the rocky ground.  
She took a step forward, leaving the silk and tule gown behind.  
“Are you saying Doctor", she licked her lips in subconscious anticipation, and slowly raised her eyes to meet his, "…that you don’t want me right now…” Her voice was soft, and supple, but deadly serious.  
The Doctor’s mouth went dry. She stood there before him, magnificent in the ethereal moonlight, poised in front of their Tardis, completely naked. Because evidently, during the axos battle and then their wedding, and then their wedding dance, and then the reception, she had been wearing nothing underneath her blue gown.  
“River, you are amazing…” the Doctor whispered.  
She took yet another step, tantalizingly closer to him before responding, “And I’m yours Doctor, I always have been, and I always will be…”  
“River, I…”  
“Shhhh, we’re up here all alone,” she smiled, “the Tardis’s outer shield is expanded over us and set to invisible, and I have a special gift from Richard our blacksmith priest…” River winked mischievously at the Doctor as she grabbed his hand and fitted it with a metal handcuff. Then she placed the other side of the handcuff onto her own wrist. “I thought that it would be fun to get a preview of what having our lives tied together would feel like… River and the Doctor, running across time and space, bound to each other…”  
The Doctor’s eye’s widened, it wasn’t how she looked, or the handcuffs (because frankly they’d had quite a penchant for those over the past hundred years), and she could always make him feel this way...but what drove him mad was hearing her say those words, so similar to the last ones that she would ever say to him before dying in the library so long ago. With his free hand, he crushed her to his body. He wouldn’t deny his love for her in any way any longer or indeed ever again. This time lord was at the mercy of a ticking clock and he knew that his heart was on the line, but his vow today meant that he would be making the most of whatever time they had left. He wanted her… desperately…right now, at the top of a rock formation or twenty feet under ground or anywhere in between, and by golly he was going to show her.  
With all the focused energy of the urgency that he felt, he bent his head and took her mouth deeply in a kiss.  
As he kissed her, he raised their bound hands to their chests, so that he could place his hand over her hearts and feel their beat, and her hand would rest on his chest and feel the same. River raised her free hand, ran it through his hair, and pulled his head even closer, deepening their kiss further. Their hearts aligned, and began to beat, to race, in unison, in a mystical, rhythmic pattern known only to the time lords.  
The Doctor pulled their tethered hands from their hearts and moved them to the small of River’s back, succeeding at pulling her closer and restraining her arm. Her chest open and encumbered, he bent his head and suckled her breast firmly. River gasped and writhed, but couldn’t budge from her restraint. Helplessly she arched her body into the Doctor’s, fitting and straining every inch of herself closer to him.  
His mouth still on her breast, his free hand began to explore and caress her body, cupping the weight of her other breast, rubbing her nipple, scooping her buttocks, pressing her ever closer to his throbbing ardent desire.  
River dropped her head back and moaned loudly.  
She had to fight back she decided, before she succumbed too fully.  
She put her free hand in his hair, and gently pulled his head away from her body, even though it ran against what every fiber of her body wanted.  
Facing each other again, she raised their tethered hands to his mouth, covered his lips with her fingers and whispered, “Shhhhhhhh….you’re wearing too many clothes my love.” But the Doctor wasn’t going to surrender so easily, he licked the fingertips over his mouth, and deftly moved his head to pull one of her fingers into his mouth and suck sharply.  
River gasped at the sudden bolt of pleasure, and then smiled. She would be redoubling her efforts.  
River used both of her hands to unbutton his vest and shirt, to spread her hands on his chest, and run her spread fingers across his skin.  
She knelt down low, pulling their tethered hands down, as she unbuttoned his trousers. She wrapped her free hand around his waist, and then with her teeth tugged to lower the fabric.  
With her tethered hand she held the Doctor’s engorged manhood and then with a fevered metre, plunged him repeatedly into her mouth.  
The Doctor tried to tangle his fingers into her hair, but he honestly couldn’t piece together two thoughts, and stopped trying.  
Just when he didn’t think she could give him any more, she changed tactics, and sweetly began pressing kisses and licks across his lower abdomen, using her hands to further kneed and tease him while her tongue would lustily flick the ridge of his shaft.  
He sighed and knelt down, facing her, pulling her toward him again and kissing her.  
He laid her back on top of their discarded clothing, putting their handcuffed arms over her head, as he pressed down into her.  
She wrapped her legs around his hips and guided him closer, as he entered her body achingly slowly. Then she lost control as he thrust in and out of her, with increasing urgency, filling her completely and then having her body momentarily ache from loss when he would pull away.  
She continued to arch her back and hips more, trying to guide him closer, deeper, until they both had no choice but to surrender to the building climax. With a last, fierce, thrust, the Doctor joined River in a cry of passion. Stars and moons shone above, the towers were singing, the night wind was blowing stories into the sand, but they were alone, together, locked in an eternal unit of space all their own,... where they only had eyes for each other. The Doctor kept River in his arms as he settled down next to her in the nest of clothing.  
Completely languorous, River snuggled into the Doctor’s chest and sighed contentedly.  
He smiled at the top of her head, reached into the breast pocked of his jacked, and within a couple of buzzes, had released them from their handcuffs.  
River comically protested with a frown. He picked them up and handed them to her.  
“You can keep them River, I was just letting us free for now.” he said with a smile.  
A wide grin spread across River’s face and she snuggled back into his chest and shoulder.  
Then she lifted her head above his face….  
"Doctor, you were magnificent.” she confessed.  
The Doctor picked up his head and nuzzled her neck, brushing tantalizing kisses that moved lower toward her chest. “Well, I do know how much you like it when I … "  
River laughed interrupting him, "Doctor! I meant with the Axonoids. You were absolutely magnificent, it was so... you…"  
He pulled her into a tight embrace hug, "I couldn’t have managed without you, River."  
She smiled. "Doctor, how did you know about the new exomoon?”  
He smirked, ever so slightly, into her hair. “Well,” he responded, “I stopped off there a couple of summers ago and saw the Axons at work. They have a sort of spa in addition to their wind farm. It allows creatures who can absorb energy directly to go there for treatment. I went for the smoothies but thought the energy treatments were just a little too invigorating….”  
River sat up in surprise and looked at the doctor intently.  
He continued, "But what was really interesting to me is that in about 50 years or so, they design a new battery they call Axonights that can help entire planets convert to sustainable energy. It spreads across the Universe….”  
He sits up and musses her hair, winking. "Sometimes Honey, a little foreknowledge CAN work in your favor.”  
River laughs in admiration.  
"The funny thing is River, when I was there, I noticed the technology that they were using on the windmills was similar to something I’d made ages ago when I was in a bit of a bind, stranded somewhere or another. It looked almost identical! So today I realized that they must have gotten the prototype from me.” He shrugged at her, smiling.  
"Oh you bootstrap beauty!" River exclaimed, giving him a large kiss on the cheek. 

______________________  
After some more kissing and rolling around laughing on the tower, the Doctor brought out a blanket, and they settled in to watch the moons and the stars.  
River turned toward the Doctor. "I almost started laughing when you winked at me during the blessing, when he said the "excitement of the river!” They both laughed together, and she laid her chest on top of him, as she sweetly brushed his hair away from his face.  
The Doctor moaned softly and held her shoulders with his hands. “It seemed aptly worded. My River IS always exciting, and never dull.”  
River suddenly looked serious. “Doctor, are we sure Madame Kovarian thinks we’re both dead? Are we safe here?”  
He leaned into her and brushed a kiss on her cheek, then caressing her chin with his thumb.  
“Don’t worry River. I think we’re safe for now. Madame Kovarian and her minions won’t try to come back here any time soon.”  
He pulled her into his lap and embraced her.  
“River, I’m sorry your parents couldn’t be here… I hope you thought the photos and letter helped.”  
River smiled. “I’m sure Amy already knows. She always sensed about us…. and my dad, let’s be glad the Centurion was at arms length.”  
They laughed at that.  
River looks up again at the sky and then deeply into the Doctor’s eyes, she can see the Universe in there as well.  
God she loved him. Of course, she loved all of him, past and future, without a doubt. She had known all of his faces. But this face, these eyes that seemed to go through her and keep her in orbit at the same time…. They were strong like smooth gray steel, and yet they had the depth of the heavens, speckled with golden dust, pulsating with stars.  
She blushed slightly and looked down.  
The Doctor, amused at what could possibly be going through her mind in order for her to have that reaction, reached out and tussled her hair, kissing her forehead and pulling her closer. "What are you thinking about Doctor Song?" he asked.  
She laughed slightly.  
“Doctor, do you remember that night we spent on the Jura Mountains, when I was still at Luna U?"  
He pulled back slightly to frown at her, but still kept her in his arms.  
"That was shameless River, absolutely disgraceful. I have no idea how I let you talk me into that, but anyone with a halfway decent telescope anywhere in that quadrant of the solar system could have witnessed the most scandalous …"  
River’s smile broadened wickedly and she interrupted, “ Well, I was just asking if you remembered Doctor, because I might have told a little fib earlier about the cloaking device’s power….while in theory I extended it beyond the Tardis, I’ve never actually tested it, and since WE can still see the Tardis, and each other, it is possible other people could see us…”  
"What/!?!"  
She stopped his shocked mouth with a kiss.  
Horrified, he said, "River, anyone could be watching.”  
Reaching for his shoulders with both hands, she pulled him closer. "Oh Doctor, let them watch…. "  
And with that, she leaned impossibly closer, until she could feel his quickened breath on her cheek. She turned her face, letting her lips brush his as her head tilted past, then her tongue darted out and slid lazily across his bottom lip. She raised her amused eyes to meet his, knowing they would have darkened with passion. They had, and he was now fully holding his breath, his eyes locked to her mouth. She moistened her lips again.  
In her mind she started counting, as only a knowing wife can, one…two…she never made it to three, before his mouth descended hungrily on hers, before she lost all sense of thought, before his tongue tasted her everywhere.  
She cried out toward the end, through their mental link, begging him to say his name in her mind.  
He chuckled and while his fingers kept thrusting deep inside of her, he said huskily,  
"You already know my name River, I seem to vividly recall you screaming it out on our last wedding night"  
Yes, well, there was that she thought, but she wanted to hear him say it again, she loved to hear him say it, whispered against her thoughts and her memories.  
She moaned and dropped her head to her shoulder. He pulled her closer, touching his head to hers, and then he whispered into her mind. He whispered his name, he confessed his love, he made the eternal vow that he had promised long ago, always and completely.  
They stayed mentally linked as they both climaxed, feeling the wave of ecstasy splash over their minds.  
She whispers his name back in Gallifreyan, she whispered her love, and she repeated his vow.  
And hours later, when exhaustion finally beat them, the Doctor picked her up, carried her across the threshold of the Tardis, laid down with her in bed, wrapped in his arms, and they both slept, in a sea of absolute tranquility.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Look for more Doctor and River Song stories, every week! Next week: Part 6 - Journey To The Crystal Layer!


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